From next Friday, August 1, the colleagues of the Aachen professional fire department will also start their operations from the interim station on Adenauerallee. Before the first shift goes on duty on Friday, Fire Department Head Dr. Markus Kremer handed over the station last Sunday together with Andreas Bierfert, Head of the Fire and Rescue Service Department, Jens Hauschild, Head of Facility Management City of Aachen and Marco Gombert, FEPS company. Numerous local residents accepted the fire department's invitation and came to see the station.

Increasing the safety of citizens

Dr. Kremer: "I am delighted that we can significantly increase the safety of citizens in the south-western part of the city with the operation of the interim fire and rescue station. I am grateful to all those involved who have contributed to making the construction possible in such a short space of time. I expressly include the neighborhood in these thanks." Bierfert adds: "We are closing a gap here in both fire protection and rescue services, which will allow us to provide more adequate care for the population in the relevant areas. In addition to the turntable ladder, an emergency fire fighting vehicle and a command vehicle for fire protection as well as an ambulance and an emergency ambulance are stationed here. We expect around 20 to 24 call-outs per day, most of which take place between 8 am and 8 pm." The focus of operations is on the rescue service with around 16 to 20 operations, while fire protection accounts for around four to five operations per day. The station has a traffic light control system that includes the two nearby junctions (Siegel and Kornelimünsterweg). The colleagues can usually dispense with the siren when deploying to operations, as the road in front of the station is cleared. After being deployed, the system is automatically reset to normal operation within approximately 90 seconds.

Planning and construction of the station in "record time"

Hauschild is proud of his colleagues in building management: "We are delighted to be able to provide the fire and rescue services with such a great building that meets the usage requirements in such a short space of time." Within just a few months, the colleagues from building management and the fire department planned how the station should look and function. The contract was not awarded to FEPS until May 2024 and construction began in October. With a time frame of just one year for planning and construction, the station is now ready for use. "Record time," say some, while Gombert sees the project as almost relaxed: "We normally work for NATO and the German Armed Forces abroad, often in crisis areas. The deployment here in Aachen was rather quiet for us." Nevertheless, he is also very satisfied with the construction time. The area with rest rooms, offices, kitchen and meeting rooms was built in containers, the vehicle hall in lightweight construction. The station can accommodate 17 people per shift. Out of consideration for the neighborhood, the station does not have the usual equipment for maintenance work on vehicles, for example, which is associated with noise emissions. This maintenance is carried out at the main station.

Transitional solution

As the name suggests, the interim station is intended to be a temporary solution. This is because Aachen is getting a new fourth fire and rescue station so that the south-west of the city can be better served by the rescue and fire protection services in the event of emergencies. The interim station will take on this important task until the complex planning and subsequent construction are completed. The city of Aachen's fire protection requirements plan has identified the need for a fourth fire station in this area of the city. Following intensive consultations, the politicians decided that this should be built on the corner of Robert-Schuman-Straße and Siegelallee. The city does not expect the new station to be operational until 2030 at the earliest. Until then, the interim station will provide the population with emergency services.